Wales’ first online Youth Climate Summit

Pupils from Ysgol Bro Dinefwr and Coedcae School were among over 50 participants who attended the first online Youth Climate Summit.

The summit provided young people from all over Wales with the opportunity to present the fantastic work they have carried out within their schools and communities to reduce their carbon footprint and raise awareness of climate change, as well as to challenge decision makers on the actions being taken to tackle the climate emergency.

Milly Jones and Isabel Edwards from Ysgol Bro Dinefwr, who are Global Goalkeepers (pupil ambassadors for Carmarthenshire’s Walk the Global Walk project), presented the summit with the actions their school has taken to reduce single use plastic within the school and community as well as the research they have undertaken to reduce air pollution outside their school.

The school is also working with a number of local organisations and is installing electric car charging points within the grounds. A substantial outdoor learning area has also been designed to help increase biodiversity and combat emissions. This exciting project will be the first of its kind in a secondary school setting in Wales.

Lily Evans from Coedcae School – also part of the Walk the Global Walk project – spoke at the summit on their achievements in raising awareness of the need for climate action among the whole school and local community.
Coedcae School Global Goalkeepers also presented the eight-point Climate Action manifesto which was the result of combined efforts from six other local schools involved in Walk the Global Walk and has recently been officially endorsed by the council.

Cllr Cefin Campbell, Executive Board Member with responsibility for tackling climate change, who attended the summit, said:

“The young people from Walk the Global Walk project are a real inspiration, challenging myself and other decision makers who attended the summit on Carmarthenshire County Council’s agenda for sustainable change. The ideas presented to us within the summit will be factored in when formulating actions for the authority to become carbon neutral by 2030”.

The summit was led by the Youth Climate Ambassadors for Wales, supported by Size of Wales, the Welsh Centre for International Affairs (WCIA) and Walk the Global Walk Goalkeepers from Ysgol Bro Dinefwr and Coedcae School, supported by Carmarthenshire County Council. The event was also attended by Members of the Senedd including Lee Waters, Deputy Minister for Economy and Transport and John Griffiths, Chair of the cross-party Biodiversity Group. They were joined by Jane Davidson, former Minister for the Environment and Sustainability and now Pro-vice chancellor of University of Wales Trinity St David.